Apple Power Mac G4 (FW800) vs Apple Power Macintosh 9500/150

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Power Mac G4 (FW800) compared with Power Macintosh 9500/150

	ApplePower Mac G4 (FW800)	ApplePower Macintosh 9500/150
Overview
Released
Released	January 2003	1996
Performance
Processor
Processor	PowerPC G4 1000 MHz (Power Mac FW800), 2 × PowerPC G4 1250 MHz (Power Mac FW800) or 2 × PowerPC G4 1420 MHz (Power Mac FW800)	PowerPC 604 150 MHz (Power Macintosh 8500/150)
CPU cores
CPU cores	1 or 2	1
Graphics
Graphics	NVIDIA GeForce4 MX (64 MB) or ATI Radeon 9000 Pro (64 MB)	Apple Accelerated Graphics (2 MB VRAM)
Memory
Memory	256 MB, 512 MB or 2 GB (better)	16 MB or 32 MB
Storage
Storage	60 GB to 120 GB (better)	2 GB
CPU
CPU	Single 1 GHz, dual 1.25 GHz or dual 1.42 GHz PowerPC G4; each physical processor has 256 KB on-chip L2 cache. L3 cache is 1 MB on the single 1 GHz, 1 MB per processor on dual 1.25 GHz and 2 MB per processor on dual 1.42 GHz. Bus is 133 MHz on the single model, 167 MHz on dual models.	One PowerPC 604 processor at 150 MHz on a removable processor card; 32 KB level-one cache, 50 MHz processor bus and 512 KB level-two cache on the logic board
GPU
GPU	Single 1 GHz: NVIDIA GeForce4 MX with 64 MB DDR. Dual 1.25/1.42 GHz: ATI Radeon 9000 Pro with 64 MB DDR. Optional NVIDIA GeForce4 Titanium and ATI Radeon 9700 Pro, each 128 MB DDR; independent CTO options stay in details.	Bundled Apple Accelerated Graphics PCI card with 2 MB VRAM, expandable to 4 MB. Exact maker tables give 24-bit colour through 832 × 624, 16-bit at 1024 × 768 and 1152 × 870, and 8-bit at 1280 × 1024 with standard memory; the 4 MB upgrade permits 24-bit through 1152 × 870 and 16-bit at 1280 × 1024. The catalogue appendix claims higher colour depths and is not transferred over the exact model tables
Memory type
Memory type	Single 1 GHz: 256 MB PC2100 DDR at 266 MHz; dual 1.25 GHz: 256 MB PC2700 DDR at 333 MHz; dual 1.42 GHz: 512 MB PC2700. Four DIMM slots support up to 2 GB. Configurations retain stock drives and GPUs at base and maximum supported memory.	16 or 32 MB listed in Apple's service manual and worldwide catalogue; the Japanese configuration has 32 MB. Twelve 168-pin 64-bit 70 ns-or-faster DIMM sockets; matching modules in corresponding sockets enable interleaving. Exact support pages and catalogue give a 768 MB maximum; later shared Service Source gives 1536 MB using 128 MB DIMMs, while English support says those DIMMs were not tested. English support lists 8 MB as the minimum RAM but does not associate it with a complete disk configuration; only the 16/32 MB configurations documented in the contemporary maker catalogue and service manual are included. This expansion discrepancy remains explicit. 4 MB ROM
Storage type
Storage type	Stock 60/80/120 GB 7200 rpm Ultra ATA/100 drives on 1/1.25/1.42 GHz respectively. Lower models have Combo DVD-ROM/CD-RW; top model has SuperDrive (DVD-R 4x, CD-R 16x). Four bays support two ATA/100 and two ATA/66 drives; two optical bays, one occupied. Optional 180 GB drive, SuperDrive on lower models and second Combo drive are not assumed in every configuration.	2 GB internal Fast SCSI hard disk, manual-inject Apple SuperDrive floppy and AppleCD 600i 4× CD-ROM. Maker catalogue lists space for two additional 3.5-inch storage devices; external SCSI up to seven devices at 5 MB/s and internal SCSI up to 10 MB/s
Expansion slots
Expansion slots	Four open full-length 64-bit 33 MHz PCI slots and AGP 4x graphics slot.	Six PCI 2.0 expansion slots, five free with the supplied graphics card; no NuBus slots. Processor is on a removable card
Display
Screen
Screen	None built in	None built in
Connections
Ports
Ports	2 × USB-A, Ethernet, headphone jack	Ethernet, headphone jack
Ethernet
Ethernet	1 Gb/s (better)	0.01 Gb/s
External displays
External displays	Up to 2	–
Front ports
Front ports	Headphone minijack and built-in speaker.	–
Back ports
Back ports	One FireWire 800 and two FireWire 400 (15 W total), two chassis USB 1.1, Gigabit Ethernet, V.92 modem, ADC/DVI, audio line-in/out and Apple Pro Speakers minijack. Maker four-port USB total includes two ports on the keyboard. Optional AirPort Extreme 54 Mbps 802.11g card and Bluetooth 1.1 module.	One ADB connector, two GeoPort/LocalTalk-compatible serial connectors, external DB-25 SCSI, AAUI-15 and 10BASE-T Ethernet connectors, 16-bit stereo sound input and output. DB-15 display connector belongs to the supplied graphics card. Both Ethernet connectors share one interface; if both are connected the service manual says 10BASE-T takes priority
External displays
External displays	Two displays in extended desktop or mirroring modes. ADC and DVI connectors with included DVI-to-VGA adapter; digital up to 1920 × 1200, analogue up to 1600 × 1200. A second ADC display needs a separately sold adapter.	One external display through the supplied graphics card, up to 1280 × 1024 with compatible display and cables; colour depth depends on video memory
Speakers
Speakers	Built-in speaker; optional Apple Pro Speakers.	Built-in speaker and 16-bit stereo sound input/output
Microphones
Microphones	–	Supports an external Apple PlainTalk microphone; shared service manual lists it as standard but the exact Japanese package list omits it, so regional inclusion remains qualified
Keyboard and mouse
Keyboard and mouse	Apple Pro Keyboard, Apple Pro Mouse, USB keyboard extension, DVI-to-VGA adapter and modem cable.	Japanese configuration includes ADB Mouse II, power cable, KanjiTalk 7.5.3 CD-ROM, manuals and warranty; keyboard and display sold separately. Shared service manual specifies system software 7.5.3 or later for the 150 MHz model
Design and power
Type
Type	Tower	Tower
Weight
Weight	19.1 kg	12.7 kg (better)
Width × depth × height
Width × depth × height	227 × 468 × 432 mm	196 × 400 × 430 mm
Operating system
Operating system	macOS	macOS
Size and weight detail
Size and weight detail	Maker reference 19.1 kg varies with configuration and manufacturing. Height 43.2 cm, width 22.7 cm, depth 46.8 cm.	Exact Japanese specifications and Service Source give 430 mm high, 196 mm wide and 400 mm deep, approximately 12.7 kg depending on installed devices. Worldwide catalogue rounds these to 429 × 196 × 401 mm and 12.6 kg
Power supply
Power supply	100–125 V or 200–240 V AC, 50–60 Hz; maximum current 6.5 A at low voltage or 7.5 A at high voltage. No wattage is supplied by this sheet.	100–240 V AC automatically configured, single phase, 50–60 Hz. Service Source distinguishes 225 W maximum DC power-supply output from input consumption
Power use
Power use	–	340 W maximum continuous AC input and 520 W peak input, excluding monitor; exact Japanese specifications and Service Source agree. English support's 225 W is the DC supply rating, not AC consumption
In the box
In the box	Mac OS X with Classic environment rather than native Mac OS 9 boot; iLife and productivity software. Single 1 GHz and dual 1.25 GHz were available on 28 January 2003; dual 1.42 GHz was announced for the following month and subsequently reviewed. Its later availability does not change the generation’s first on-sale date.	English support gives 22 April 1996 as introduction. Apple's May 1996 worldwide product catalogue lists this exact model as an offering, supporting release year 1996; actual first-sale month/day remains unconfirmed